General Information
- The national General Election is Nov. 5
- To vote in that election, you must be:
- A U.S. citizen
- 18 years of age or older by election day
- REGISTERED TO VOTE*
- and not otherwise ineligible.
- Rice students have the option to register to vote in either of two places:
- Vote here in Harris County (must register by Oct. 7*)
- Vote on election day at Rice's own on-campus polling site (Rice Welcome Center), or
- Ride the Rice BRC/TMC Shuttle to the closest Early Voting site (shuttle stop 12)
- Early voting is Oct. 21 - Nov. 1 (at approved Harris County early voting locations)
- Or vote at your "permanent address" (usually a parent's address)
- Requires that you register at that address, then request and return an absentee ballot
- Different states have different rules and deadlines--check TurboVote at ricevotes.rice.edu
- If you are concerned you might miss the deadline, or wish to switch your out-of-town registration to allow you to vote at Rice, you may do so by registering to vote in Harris County by Oct. 7*.
- Vote here in Harris County (must register by Oct. 7*)
- * VERY IMPORTANT:The deadline to register to vote in Harris County is Oct. 7
- Whether you wish to vote at Rice or "back home," TurboVote at ricevotes.rice.edu can help.
- NOTE: THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS ONLINE VOTER REGISTRATION but you can use TurboVote to find information, request and complete mail-in forms and get text reminders.
Where to Register to Vote
- Between now and the Harris County registration deadline, voter registration tables will be set up:
- At the RMCnear Grand Hall every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 11 am–1 pm.
- At Fondren Library(near the Circulation Desk):
- Sept. 30, 1-5 p.m.
- Oct. 1-4, from 1-5 p.m.
- Oct. 7, 12-6 p.m.
- At the Rice MultiCultural Center
- Oct. 3, 4-6 p.m.
- If these times don’t work, students can email Anna Xiong (govhelp@rice.edu) to schedule a time with Kelley Center’s VDVRs. Students registering in their home state should visit Rice TurboVote (rice.turbovote.org) for deadlines and absentee voting information. Rice Votes is available to help with questions about absentee voting for Harris County and other states—contact Verónica Reyna (vr33@rice.edu) for support.
Additional Resources